I know a lot of you have been waiting to see some old-school rides from TAS so I've put together this gallery of the best vintage machinery I could find at the Makuhari Messe, starting off with a shot of the Rocky Auto Fairlady Z. Pretty mean no? Read on to find out more!

Impulse were really rocking some top cars this year and next to the red LHD Levin we have already seen was this 4-door GC110 "Yonmeri" Skyline, oozing style from every angle you looked at it from! The super clean body was joined by some subtle details like the Hakosuka-type front chin spoiler and those stunning 15-inch TE37Vs that want to make me get a classic car just so I could fit them! 

That's a lightly tuned L28 straight six in there running Solex carbs and red anodized funnels to match the head cover.

You really can't get more vintage JDM than this! 

Another look at the engine, but make sure you "don't touch! This car is...." (What??)

At the back the single light tail conversion kept things very simple. Brilliant looking car!

As I was waling to check out the T&E D1 BMW is spotted this abs Isuzu 117 sporting a not so stock violet color and pumping some seriously loud music from its interior.

The view from the back explained all.

Here is that Rocky Auto Z from the opening picture. It was new-meets old when it comes to the work that has been carried out, starting from the carbon hood and R35 GT-R hood-vents, custom wide fenders...

...and RB26 conversion running a massive HKS T04Z turbine kit. Loved the packaging on this car, take a look at how short the intercooler piping is!

That GT wing is probably there to help give the rear tires a chance of putting at least a fraction of the 589 HP it develops down to the ground!

Next to the Rocky Auto Z was the same S30 we saw last month at the Mooneyes Hot Rod show in Yokohama...

...also powered by a supped up RB26.

And talking of S30s with engine conversions I found this Roadster Aki-Coupe rather interesting. Under the Toyota 2000GT replica body is an S30 Fairlady Z...

...powered by, wait for it, an RB26! 

The rear looks pretty authentic, for a replica.

The same company also created this "Bond Car" 2000GT roadster based on a NC6 Miata.

The B6 engine remains however.

And no I'm not quite done with transplants yet! This Rocky Auto Kenmery was probably my favorite out of all the modernized old-school rides.

No turbo power for this one however, that is a naturally aspirated RB26, modified to crank out close to 300 HP.

Bucktooth front lip gets extra points.

This engine looks remarkably similar to the NA RB26 I once saw in an R32 GT-R Top Secret built, down to the custom exhaust manifold.

GC110 goodness all round!

For lovers of muscle cars I have included a few shots of this Mach 1 Mustang...

...on display next to its modern counterpart.

The G-Works area of the third hall was where it was all happening for connoisseurs of the more vintage ride. This Star Road KPGC10 was lifted off the ground to make it easy to see all the custom restoration work that it was put through.

And in case you were wondering if it was authentic, thanks to that sweet S20 sitting in the engine bay.

A classic for the new millennium! This little Sport 800 was built by the Toyota Technical College of Tokyo and did away with a conventional gasoline engine in place of a bunch of batteries and an electric motor.

Not a bad idea basing a project like this on such a small and lightweight car!

How is this for some true seventies flavor!

You just don't see these old Sunny's on the streets any more so seeing a fully race-prepped one at TAS was great!

Just look at the massive over-fenders compared to the tiny Panasport wheels!

For those that appreciate the more period-correct kind of restoration this S30 was pretty immaculate, even fitted with the stock steel wheels. Not sure if that metallic blue was originally available however.

Nothing out of place here, including the big orange airbox to feed the twin carbs.

But at the end of the day its not really sacrilegious to fit modern parts to old cars like this Hakosuka, especially when they look as good as these bronze TE37Vs! Got lip?

That's it for the older rides of TAS, next up will be the final post where I check out some of the best imports and supercars on display!

-Dino Dalle Carbonare